


Softly

by being_alive



Series: The Softlyverse Modern AU [1]
Category: Romeo And Juliet - All Media Types, Romeo And Juliet - Shakespeare, Romeo et Juliette - Presgurvic, Rómeó és Júlia (Színház)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Copious Amounts of Candles, Even If I Must Sail It Alone, F/M, Featuring What Could Be Seen As A Setting Vaguely Similar To The US, Fluff, I Will Go Down With This Ship, Non-Chronological, Older Man/Younger Woman, POV Alternating, POV Third Person, Suggestive Themes
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-05
Updated: 2019-09-07
Packaged: 2019-10-05 00:37:33
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 39
Words: 20,110
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17314778
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/being_alive/pseuds/being_alive
Summary: A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.





	1. Morning Musings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was trying to work on the next chapter of An Unlikely Marriage when this popped into my head instead.

Sunlight is streaming in through the window when Escalus wakes up. Beside him, Juliet is still sleeping soundly, despite the bright light and despite the fact that the bedside clock reads a quarter past ten. He's slept later than he normally does, but he always does sleep better when Juliet stays the night.

Escalus sits up and stretches, wincing at the cracking noises his back makes and the twinge of pain that accompanies the sounds. She'd chide him for it if she knew, and say that he shouldn't spend so much time slouching at his desk. He'd respond that he doesn't slouch, that he's just getting older. She would deny that, of course, because she always does, even though he is roughly fifteen years her senior and even though his hair is starting to turn grey. 

Her stubbornness is a nice complement to his cautiousness, and it's one of the many things that he loves about her. As he looks down at her sleeping form, he finds himself thinking of what has led them to here.

He's known her, or at least known of her, from almost the time she was born, and had met her a few times as a child, but it wasn't until the holiday party four years ago that he had truly become aware of her. Juliet had quite literally stumbled into his life, in a cloud of pink silk and sweet perfume, and in helping her stand, he himself had fallen, even if it took another year for him to realize anything, after she had taken a summer job as his secretary after his regular one went out on maternity leave, even if it was a couple months after she first started the job that they even went on their first date.

Now, she still wears pink silk, though in the form of a nightgown trimmed with delicate lace rather than a ball gown, and there's a bottle of her perfume on the counter in his bathroom. He still has that suit, too, tucked away in the back of his closet with a small box hidden away in the pants pocket. Someday soon he'll pull the box from within the pocket and get down on one knee in front of her. If his knees will allow him, that is, he thinks after the left one makes an ungodly cracking sound when he stretches his legs out.

That's still some time away, because her father still doesn't quite approve fully of Juliet dating his boss. But for now, Escalus just needs to get up and get around. Just as he moves to get out of bed, a small hand closes around his wrist.

"Stay," Juliet says, peering up at him through barely-opened brown eyes. He wants to tell her that he can't, that he has a meeting in two hours and that he needs to shower, get dressed, drink his coffee, and do so many other things that suddenly seem so inconsequential compared to her.

"Just for five minutes," he says, settling himself back in bed beside her.

"Good enough," Juliet says, smiling a groggy smile and then resting her head against his chest. Escalus runs his fingers through her golden hair and smiles down at her. He would move the world for her if he could, but for now he thinks he can suffice with rescheduling a meeting. He'll text his secretary as soon as Juliet falls back asleep, he decides, and tell her to do so for him.

His associates may call him _the Prince_ , for his family name and for his position in his company, but with her he is just a man.


	2. Thoughtfulness

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in a modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm having too much fun writing these.

Escalus sits at his desk, rubbing his temples with a groan. He can feel a headache coming on, but he knows he can't afford to take a break, not now. He has important paperwork due by the end of the day, and even though he came in to work two hours early, he still has over half of it to go. The words in the document are starting to blur together and he finds himself to be especially tired, probably because of the fact that he came in two hours early.

Just as he's about to resume typing, someone knocks on his door.

If it's Mercutio with another one of his idiotic proposals ("Hear me out, uncle, what about _pants_ , but for _cats_..."), he'll fire the boy. Okay, maybe he won't fire his own nephew, but he will demote him. Temporarily.

"Come in," Escalus calls out, closing his laptop. To his surprise, it is not Mercutio or either of his other nephews that walks in, but Juliet.

"I got you these," Juliet says, and that's when he notices the cup and bag in her hands. "A flat white with an extra shot of espresso and a cheese danish."

He simply stares at her, surprise flooding through him at the fact that she did this for him, not just because it's her that did it, but because he can't remember the last time anyone other than his nephews had done something like this for him.

"You didn't have to do this for me," he says as she sets the coffee and the danish down on an empty spot on his desk.

"I know. I wanted to, though. I was going to Starbucks for my lunch break anyway, so it wasn't any trouble," she says, smiling at him. Warmth spreads through him at the sight of her smile and the fact that not only did she think of him, she got something for him.

"Let me repay you for this," he says, reaching for his wallet. Juliet waves her hands and says, "I don't want you to repay me. It wasn't that much, plus I used the gift card Tybalt gave me for my last birthday, so it's not like it really cost me anything."

"If you say so," Escalus says, reaching out and taking the cup of coffee in hand, before saying, "I don't know how you did it, but you managed to get exactly what I would've ordered for myself."

"I emailed Valentine to ask what you like," she explains, her smile turning sheepish.

"Thank you," he says, earnestly, his hazel eyes meeting her brown ones as he picks up the cup of coffee and takes a sip. It's hot, but not scaldingly so, and tastes just the way he likes it.

Juliet's smile widens and she says, "You're welcome. I should probably get back to work, but just let me know if you need anything else. I am your secretary for now, you know."

"Of course," he says, returning her smile, and then she's turning and walking out. She shuts the door and he opens his laptop once again. Somehow, the work he has left in front of him doesn't seem nearly as daunting now.

Escalus makes sure to come in early the next day as well, not to get more work done, but to leave flowers on her desk.


	3. The First Date

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This turned out much longer than I'd planned for it to be, but oh well.

"Two tickets for _When Benedick Met Beatrice_ , please," Escalus tells the clerk. Juliet stands beside him, staring up at the menu and trying to decide exactly what she wants.

"Sure thing," the clerk replies, keying it into the register before asking, "Anything else?"

"What would you like, Juliet?" Escalus asks, looking down at her. She turns her attention away from the menu and looks at him and then the clerk before saying, "A medium orange soda and a small popcorn. Oh, and a bag of Skittles."

The clerk nods and Escalus says, "A small bag of popcorn for me as well, and a small Pepsi."

"Got it," the clerk says, handing Escalus the tickets. Escalus brings out a credit card and pays for the food and the tickets before Juliet has a chance to object, and the clerk hands him the receipt before going to get their overpriced snacks ready. Escalus holds out one of the tickets and then smiles down at her. "Skittles, huh?"

"What's wrong with Skittles?" She asks, taking the ticket and then looking up at him with her eyebrows drawn together.

"Nothing," Escalus says, grabbing two straws from the dispenser as the clerk sets their drinks on the counter before continuing, "Skittles just so happen to be my favorite candy, so I might have to steal a couple from you."

"They're my favorite too," she says, her cheeks beginning to heat up. "But I don't mind sharing."

If someone had told her last month that she would be going on a date with the man who is both her father's boss and her own temporary boss, she wouldn't have believed them. She's had a crush on him for years, since she was a teenager, but she had never once thought outside of her most secret daydreams, that he would ever be interested in her as well, or that he'd ask her on a date after work one day, or that said date would be to see of all things a romcom, or that he'd look so good in a simple shirt and jeans, or that they'd both have Skittles as their favorite candy, or even that he'd like candy at all. 

Escalus hands Juliet her straw and she quickly removes the paper wrapping and sticks it through the lid of her soda. Escalus does the same, and then the clerk sets the bag of Skittles on the counter next to the drinks. Juliet picks up her drink and the bag of Skittles, taking a sip of her drink before asking, "So, which color of Skittles is your favorite?"

Escalus leans against the counter and takes a sip of his own drink before answering, "It's hard to say, really. I like them all, but I think I like the purple ones the best."

"Good choice," Juliet says. "But my favorites are the green ones, so it looks like we have no competition there."

Escalus laughs and the sound makes butterflies flutter through her stomach because this is the first time she's ever really heard his laugh and he has a nice laugh, really. The clerk finally sets the bags of popcorn down. Escalus and Juliet take them and then walk to the bored usher and give him their tickets. 

"Theater five," the usher says, handing them back their ticket stubs. Escalus nods and then he and she are walking towards the theater. He opens the door for her, and she thanks him, her cheeks burning again. The theater isn't too terribly crowded, so they're able to get the seats they want. Juliet sits in the aisle seat and Escalus sits in the seat beside her. Juliet tears open the packet of Skittles and they share it while talking, about work and what classes she's taking when college starts back up and anything else they comes to mind, until the lights dim and the previews begin.

They finish the Skittles and then start on their individual bags of popcorn, still occasionally talking, more quietly this time, until the movie starts and they both quiet down completely. 

At some point during the movie, towards the middle of it, she thinks, after they've both finished off their popcorn and most of their drinks, Escalus's hand finds hers.

His hand is warm and only slightly greasy from the popcorn and she doubts her hand feels much different, but still, it's nice, especially when he doesn't try to do more than hold her hand. She glances over at him, only to find him focused on the movie, an amused smile on his face at the hijinks occurring on the screen, so she looks back at the movie and tries to focus as well, but all she can think about is him, the will-they-won't-they relationship between the titular pair be damned. 

By the time she's finally able to focus on the movie again, the credits have begun to roll and people have begun to walk from the theater. Escalus lets go of her hand as he stands and picks up his empty popcorn bag and drink. Juliet finds herself missing the contact as she stands up as well, collecting her trash as well. They walk out of the theater, him behind her, and throw their trash away in the trash can outside.

"I'll meet you in the lobby," Juliet says, and Escalus nods and says, "See you there."

She goes in the restroom and washes her hands and reapplies her lipgloss before joining Escalus in the lobby. He's standing there, staring outside, and it's not long before she notices why. 

It's raining, and heavily, heavily enough for there to already be a half-inch or so of water rushing over the asphalt.

"This is unfortunate," Escalus says once she comes to stand beside him. She can't help but to agree, because while she knew there was a chance of rain for today, it was only supposed to be a slight chance. 

"What a shame," Juliet says, laughing nervously before adding, almost as an afterthought, "I really liked these shoes."

Almost at the same time as she does, Escalus glances down at her feet. Her shoes are sandals, strappy and cute and pink and absolutely unsuited to walking through water.

"If you'd like, I can go get the car while you wait here," Escalus says, glancing out towards the parking lot and then back at her. She considers it, briefly, but realizes that there's no way she could let him walk through the rain alone in good conscience just because she doesn't want to ruin her shoes, so she says, "No, I'll walk with you."

"Are you sure?" Escalus asks and she nods. Conflict passes across his face and then he's sitting down on a nearby bench and untying his shoes. She watches in confusion as he takes them off, wondering just what the point of him doing so is.

"Wear mine," he says, noticing her bewildered gaze. She sits on the bench next to him, seriously considering it before saying, "But then I'd ruin your shoes."

"Believe me when I say that I have three identical pairs at home," he says, and she nods before taking off her own shoes. She places her sandals on the bench and picks up one of his shoes. They're something close to the shoes he wears to the office everyday, but slightly more casual.

With a sigh, she slides first that shoe and then the other onto her feet, lacing up his shoes as tightly as she can because they're ridiculously big on her much smaller feet. Escalus comes back with an empty popcorn bag in his hand, and picks up her sandals from the bench and puts them in the bag. He tucks the bag under his arm and asks, "Are you ready?"

"I suppose so," she replies, standing up and taking his offered hand.

They dash, both somewhat awkwardly, through the parking lot, hand in hand, until they reach his car. Escalus unlocks it quickly and then they both get in, finally out of the rain. He hands her the bag containing her sandals, and Juliet opens it to find her sandals only slightly damp. 

"Thank you," she tells him, earnestly.

"It was no problem at all," Escalus replies, as if he didn't just run through the parking lot in his socks.

She usually never kisses on the first date, but as they sit here, raining pouring outside and him with his wet socks and his hair falling in his face and her with his too-big shoes still on her feet and her sandals in her lap, she gets the strangest urge to kiss him, so she does.

The kiss is gentle and his lips are softer than she ever could've imagined, and when she pulls away, she finds him looking at her with his hazel eyes wide and with her lipgloss smeared across his lips.


	4. A Surpise Visitor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I should be getting ready to leave for class, and what am I doing instead? Posting this.

Last night was the first night that Juliet had ever stayed the night, so it had only seemed right to Escalus to make breakfast for her, so that's what he's doing now, while she finishes taking a bath. There's coffee brewing in the machine on the counter, and a bowl of pancake batter to his left that he's spooning dollops out of and into the pan on the stove. 

He'd debated between making a few large pancakes and many small ones before eventually deciding upon the small ones, so that's what he's making. His mother had often made the same thing for his father, so it seems fitting in a way to commemorate this milestone in his and Juliet's relationship, budding though it is. Just as he places the batter-covered spoon back into the bowl, the sound of the front door being unlocked reaches his ears.

The front door, visible from Escalus's spot in front of the stove, begins to open but he's not particularly worried because only his nephews have keys to the door, and only Mercutio would stop by unannounced, but then his eyes fall upon Juliet's jacket hanging beside the door, and while he definitely has not forgotten that Juliet is still in his apartment, the gravity of the fact that she's here and so is Mercutio dawns on him and he becomes particularly worried.

"Good morning, uncle," Mercutio calls out, practically singing, and Escalus returns to his pancakes, trying to act as if there's nothing out of the ordinary about this morning as he replies, "Good morning, Mercutio."

"Are those pancakes I smell?" Mercutio asks, removing his own jacket and hanging it beside Juliet's before continuing as he walks into the kitchen, "Its been ages since you've made pancakes. There must be some sort of special occasion for this."

"No, there's nothing special going on at all," Escalus replies, too quickly, glancing down at the pancakes and then back up at Mercutio.

"Liar. I'll bet my share of the company stocks that the pancakes and the owner of the mystery jacket hanging on your coat rack are somehow connected," Mercutio says, and then asks, "So, who does the jacket belong to?"

Escalus's stomach sinks, the thought of the pancakes cooking in front of him no longer quite as appetizing because Juliet's parents don't even know about his relationship with their daughter yet, and now Mercutio has noticed Juliet's jacket, and he's never known his nephew to let a subject that he's curious about drop.

"A friend," Escalus states, simply. Mercutio smiles wryly and replies, "I wasn't aware you had friends, uncle."

"I have friends," Escalus retorts, but it sounds like a weak defense even to his own ears.

"Your priest doesn't count," Mercutio replies, dryly, and Escalus fixes him with a glare. Mercutio laughs and adds, "Fine, fine. So your priest does count. But even so, I don't think Father Lawrence would be the type to wear a jean jacket with pink butterflies embroidered on it."

"Actually, it's mine," Juliet says from somewhere that's likely the doorway to the kitchen, and Escalus sighs because this isn't how he pictured Mercutio finding out about this at all.

"Good morning, Juliet," Escalus says, because he can't think of anything else to say, and glances back to find her exactly where he thought she was, clad in one of his shirts with her still-wet hair pulled back in a ponytail.

"Good morning to you too, Escalus," she replies, smiling, seemingly unbothered by the fact that Mercutio is here, before continuing, "And good morning to you, Mercutio."

Escalus looks back at his nephew and finds Mercutio stunned into silence for what has to be the first time since he learned how to talk, blinking rapidly with his mouth hanging open slightly.

"The coffee smells good," Juliet says, walking forward and into the kitchen to pour herself a cup.

"I should hope so. It's your favorite kind," he replies, glancing at Mercutio and then back down at the pancakes. Escalus flips one that is starting to look suspiciously crispy around the edges over to let the other side cook as thoroughly over with his spatula and that's when Mercutio finally speaks, his hazel gaze flickering between Juliet and Escalus as he says, "A _friend_."

"And more," Juliet replies, cheerfully. "Would you like some coffee?"


	5. Welcome Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My original intention was to have this AU be fluffy and nothing else and yet here I am, with (slight) angst.

Escalus is late again tonight, Juliet notes to herself, looking up from her psychology textbook and to the clock on the wall. It's half past seven. Escalus was supposed to get home at six. With a sigh, Juliet closes her textbook because she knows she won't be able to focus on anything but her thoughts of Escalus until he gets home.

This is the third time this week he's been late and she can only hope he'll be here soon. If he were anyone else but who he is, she'd be worried that he was having an affair, but she knows that he's not the type of man to do so. Besides, these past few days where he's been late, he's just so tired, so worn-down that he's had barely enough energy to kiss her hello before staggering into the kitchen to reheat his dinner. 

She knows he's trying to work on the merger between her family and the Montagues, and that there's conflict between Mercutio and Paris, because Paris thinks that one thing should be done while Mercutio thinks the opposite, conflict that Valentine is trying and failing to resolve despite his best efforts, so she understands why Escalus has been so late lately, though she still doesn't like it. As important as his work is, she'd much rather he be here with her, as selfish as that may be. 

With another glance at the clock, Juliet stands up and begins to pace around the living room. She worries about him, about his tendency for overworking himself, about the fact that she knows his back has been bothering him more lately than it used to, and about a thousand more things, even though he always tells her he's fine, though his insistence that she not worry for him only serves to make her worry more. On her third lap around the living room, she can hear the front door begin to open, startling her from her thoughts. In walks Escalus, frowning in concentration but finally here.

Seeing him like this now, wondering when his hair became so grey and his eyes so tired, she's reminded acutely of just how much older than her he is, but even so she can't help but to love him all the same, if not even more. Smiling at the sight of him, Juliet walks over to him.

"Welcome home," she says, and stands on the tips of her toes to press her lips to his.


	6. Admitting, Accidentally and Not

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Originally, I was going to wait to post this on Valentine's Day, but I'm impatient, so here we are.

The first time Escalus ever says that he loves her, it is a complete accident that he does so. Or at least she's fairly certain it is, because she knows him well enough to know that this likely isn't how he would want to tell her. He's moving on top of her, his hips rocking into hers and his mouth is pressed against the spot where her shoulder meets her neck in an attempt to muffle the sounds of his surprisingly-loud moans, so she feels it more than she hears it as he mumbles _I love you_ into her skin.

 _I love you too,_ she thinks, and digs her nails deeper into the skin of his back. 

\---

The first time Juliet tells Escalus that she loves him, it is also by complete accident. Escalus is sitting on his couch with an arm wrapped around her as she rests her head against his side. She'd come over with the intent of watching a movie with him, and that's how they started off, but now she finds herself growing tired, and unbearably so. With a yawn, Juliet belatedly reflects upon the fact that perhaps staying up half the previous night to study for the exam she'd taken earlier was perhaps not the best idea. All of the sudden, Escalus reaches out past her and she wonders briefly just what he's doing, but then he's pulling a blanket over her. She blinks sleepily up at him and in that moment, looking up at his face illuminated by the blue light of the television through her half-closed eyes, it suddenly seems like a very good idea to say _I love you_. So she does. 

Escalus says nothing, simply smiling down at her with a smile that seems to say _I love you too_.

\---

Fittingly enough, it is Valentine's Day when they both officially confess their feelings. They're walking back to his apartment from a nearby restaurant, hand-in-hand through the dark and snowy streets. They've stopped under a streetlight to wait for the light to turn so that they can cross the street and Juliet takes the opportunity to look around them, wondering how she's managed to go through twenty-one years of life without noticing just how beautiful her city is, for all of its many flaws. But, she thinks that for all of the beauty of the city, she much prefers to look at the man beside her, plain-featured though he may be. When she looks back up at him, she finds him already looking down at her. 

"I love you," Escalus tells her, almost hesitantly, reaching up to touch her cheek with his gloved fingertips. She smiles up at him, leaning into his touch as she replies, "I love you too."


	7. Birdsong

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This short chapter was inspired by my own birds, so shoutout to them!

Growing up, the only pet Escalus was allowed to keep was a fish in a tank in his bedroom that he'd named Fred. Fred was a good fish, or as good as fish come, and had lived for five years before meeting his untimely end. After Fred, Escalus had never gotten any other pets, because by then he found himself to be far too busy to pay proper attention to any sort of pet. However, that had all changed when Juliet moved in with him, and with her came four little birds. 

They're parakeets, or budgies, he supposes, and Escalus only really likes them for about the first day after they arrive. They spend all day, every day after that doing what Juliet calls singing but what he thinks sounds more like screaming, and they somehow manage to get seed shells and feathers all over the floor even several feet away from their cage, and Escalus finds himself understanding just why Tybalt had smiled so smugly when he'd helped Juliet bring them over. 

The birds are pretty little menaces, at least, with two of them being differing shades of blue in color, one being green and yellow in color, and the fourth being grey and white with a yellow face. Unsurprisingly, Mercutio had become instantly besotted with the birds the first time he had come over and seen them, because of course he would.

Juliet loves them as well, because they are her birds, after all, having bought them shortly after she'd graduated high school, and she often stands by their cage and talks to them. It is one evening as Escalus looks up from his laptop to find her doing just that, that he realizes that if she loves the birds, and he loves her, he supposes that he can grow to love the birds as well. 

_Eventually._


	8. Good Morning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Valentine's Day!

"And this is your desk," Valentine says, concluding their tour of the office, and Juliet nods. Today is her first day filling in for Escalus's secretary, and as a result Valentine had volunteered to show her around the office because her father was busy and Escalus is running late. She appreciates the tour, she really does, since this is going to be where she works for the rest of the summer after all, but at the same time she can't help but to feel slightly annoyed because while she has seen every water station and every restroom and every copy machine in this building, she has yet to see the one reason she'd even really so eagerly taken this job to begin with, with that reason being _the Prince_ himself.

"Well, temporarily at least," Valentine adds, after a moment, startling her from her thoughts. Forcing a smile to her face and reflecting that while Valentine may look like his uncle, or at least the most like his uncle out of the nephews she's seen, it's just not the same as seeing Escalus himself, Juliet replies, "Thank you again, Valentine, for showing me around."

"Oh, it was no problem at all," Valentine replies, smiling, and Juliet nods, looking down at the desk. The secretary who she's filling in for had left the desk neat, thankfully, and had labeled things as well.

"Good morning, uncle," Valentine says, suddenly and cheerfully, and Juliet's heart skips a beat as she looks up from the desk and towards the man stepping out of the elevator. He's frowning already, even though he just arrived, but he's finally here. 

"Good morning," Juliet says as well, hesitantly, and Escalus looks first at Valentine and then at her. When he does so, something in his face inexplicably changes. His frown softens at least a little bit, and there's something else there that she doesn't dare to name.

She meets his eyes and finds that while they're hazel in color, they're far more green than brown now that she sees him up close in the bright office lights. She also finds in his eyes something resembling joy, as well as surprise and perhaps just a bit of nervousness, all of which she's sure are reflected in her own eyes.

"Good morning, Valentine," Escalus says, his eyes never leaving hers as he says, "And good morning to you too, Juliet."


	9. Tybalt

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I should be sleeping, but, well...

"Are you sure about this?" Escalus asks, glancing from Juliet to the building in front of him.

"What, are you scared of meeting Tybalt as my boyfriend and not just my father’s boss?" Juliet asks, looking at him with eyebrows raised.

"I'm not scared," Escalus replies, sighing. "Simply nervous. I've heard that this cousin of yours has quite the temper and I'd rather not be on the receiving end of it."

Juliet laughs and stands on the tips of her toes to press a kiss to his cheek before replying, "Don't worry. Tybalt is a sweetheart." 

She then opens the door to the Starbucks in front of them and walks inside. With a sigh, Escalus follows her inside. He's met Tybalt but a few brief times, but he's heard much of him from Mercutio, with most of it being complaints.

Once inside, he spots Tybalt immediately, sitting at a table next to the display of bagged coffee, and it's apparent in the way that Tybalt stands up, smiling, that he notices them immediately as well. They make their way over to him, whereupon he stands and embraces Juliet and nods in Escalus's general direction. After Juliet and Tybalt part, they all take their seats, with Tybalt returning to his and Juliet and Escalus sitting across from him.

They, or at least mostly Tybalt and Juliet with occasional input from Escalus, talk for some time, and then Juliet is saying, "I suppose I should order before the line gets too long."

"Why don't I do that instead?" Escalus asks, before adding, "So that you and Tybalt can spend more time talking together." 

"No, let me do it. I want to give you and Tybalt the chance to get to know each other better," Juliet replies. Tybalt says nothing and simply watches them, his dark gaze flicking between Escalus and Juliet. Escalus somehow refrains from sighing, because first he felt like a third wheel even though he's the one that's in the relationship with Juliet, and now she wants to leave him alone with the cousin he's heard little to no good about from anyone but Juliet, and then nods.

"A matcha soy latte, right, Tybalt?" Juliet asks, standing up from her seat.

"And a slice of banana bread," Tybalt says, shooting Juliet a smile.

"Got it," Juliet says, returning the smile before turning to Escalus with an even wider smile as she continues, "Let me guess. The same as always?"

"Of course," he replies, returning the smile. 

"Got it. I'll be right back, then," she says, and then leaves the table. Escalus turns back to Tybalt and is just thinking that perhaps this won't turn out too terribly when Tybalt's entire demeanor changes as soon as Juliet is out of sight. His smile turns to a scowl and his gaze darkens as he peers at Escalus.

"So, Juliet tells me that you're studying to become a lawyer," Escalus begins, hesitantly, after a moment of awkward silence.

"I am," Tybalt replies, tersely, before leaning forward, crossing his arms, and saying, "Though that's not important right now. What's important is the fact that if you do anything to hurt my cousin, and I mean _anything_ , I'll hurt you worse. I don't care if you are my uncle's boss."

"I won't hurt her," Escalus replies, almost offended that Tybalt would think so. _A sweetheart, indeed,_ he thinks to himself.

"And I hope for both of our sakes that's true, but I'm just telling you what I'll do if you do," Tybalt replies, his dark gaze boring into Escalus's.

"I understand," Escalus says, pushing through part of him that's offended to realize that this has nothing to do with him in particular and everything to do with concern and love for Juliet. Or at least that's what he hopes.

"I'm glad we understand one another, Escalus," Tybalt says, leaning back into his seat before adding, thoughtfully, "Though I suppose it's better you than a Montague."


	10. Cream of Mushroom Soup (For the Soul)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to [ellenoruschka](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ellenoruschka) for the idea!

When Juliet walks out of the bedroom and into the living room, Escalus instantly finds himself worried for her, because she looks rather like how he'd imagine a personification of death to, sickly pale and tired, only with a fuzzy green blanket in place of a dark shroud.

"Are you all right?" He asks in concern, only to get his answer when she dissolves into a coughing fit.

"I'm fine," Juliet says, weakly, even though it's abundantly clear that she is absolutely not fine. He stands up from the couch and makes his way over to her. Juliet looks up at him and he takes the opportunity to rest a hand against her forehead. His suspicions are confirmed by the burning hotness of her skin, and then he says, "No, you're not. You feel feverish."

"Mmhmm," Juliet replies, noncommittally, leaning into his touch.

"And I'm guessing you don't feel particularly well either," he says, pulling his hand away and letting it fall to his side.

"Not really, no," Juliet agrees before adding, "I think the girl who sits next to me in Oral Comm got me sick."

"You should stay home today," he says, gently.

"Can't. I have classes today," she objects.

"Missing one day of classes isn't the end of the world," Escalus replies, and Juliet narrows her eyes at him as she retorts, "So says the man who tried to go to work when he had the flu."

"And I was a fool to do so," he admits, before nudging her back towards the bedroom and saying, "Now, go lay back down and I'll make you some soup."

She looks ready to protest before she turns away from him to begin coughing again, after which she simply sighs, nods, and walks back into the bedroom. He stands in the doorway just long enough to make sure she actually lays back down in bed, and then walks into the kitchen. Escalus stands in front of the cabinets, turning assorted cans around so that he can see the labels, until finally he finds a can of cream of mushroom soup. Later, he'll make her something better, something homemade and hearty, but for now he just wants to get this to her as quickly as possible.

He doesn't like to see her like this, he reflects. She's gotten sick a handful of times since they started dating, and he's hated it every time, both because of how it affects her and because of the fact that he's so, so... _useless_ to do anything to help. If only he were a doctor, he thinks, and not the head of a company that's currently trying to tear itself apart. But that's beside the point, he tells himself, because all that matters now is Juliet.

He heats the soup up in a pan on the stove before transferring it into a bowl to take to Juliet. When he walks into the bedroom, Juliet sits up and looks at him. Escalus hands it to her before walking back to the kitchen to pour a glass of orange juice to take back to her. He sets it down on the nightstand and then walks around to the other side of the bed.

He kicks off his shoes and strips himself of his suit jacket and then crawls back into bed beside her, leaning back against the headboard and watching her as she drinks some of the soup.

"You'll get sick too," Juliet says, setting her soup on her lap and wiping her mouth on the back of her hand. Escalus shrugs and then replies with a smile, "I'm still not going anywhere. And besides, didn't you say I work too much anyway?"


	11. Recompense

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This turned out a bit shorter than I'd hoped it would because I'm starting to run low on ideas, but believe me, I'm still trying to work on this AU!

After the first time Juliet had brought him coffee and a danish, she had started doing so again and again, at least once a week. He would never admit it to anyone, but those quick moments had become the highlight of his week, even if he did hate the fact that she never let him pay her back, even long after she should've run out of money on her gift card. He had never let himself consider the possibility that she might be doing so out of anything other than friendly feelings or sympathy at his workload, until now, two months after classes had started back up and his normal secretary had returned to her job. The only reason he even lets himself consider the thought now is the fact that Juliet is here again, standing in his office with a coffee and a danish in hand.

"Good afternoon," she says, cheerfully, smiling at him.

"Thank you, but why do you keep doing this for me?" Escalus asks, looking up at her from where he sits. Juliet sets them down on his desk and is silent for several long moments before finally replying, "I like being able to do something that makes you happy."

"Let me repay you," he says, without even really meaning to, standing up and walking around the desk so that they're face to face.

"I told you before that I don't want your money," Juliet replies, her brown eyes meeting his hazel ones. 

"Not that kind of recompense," he replies, wondering if he's perhaps misread the situation, but the way her cheeks turn a faint pink at his words convinces him to continue, "Let me take you out on a date."


	12. Insecurity and Doubt

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you again to [ellenoruschka](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ellenoruschka) for the idea for this!
> 
> Also, with the posting of this chapter, this fic has entered my top five longest things ever posted, so I guess all these little chapters do add up!

"You must be Juliet," the unfamiliar woman sitting behind the secretarial desk says, smiling a smile that's perhaps a bit too friendly up at her.

"Yes, I am," Juliet replies, pausing on her way to Escalus's office in a surprise visit that was supposed to be both an excuse to see him and to bring him coffee. While this woman may know who Juliet it, she in turn has no clue who she is. Unbidden, jealousy flares up inside of her. Usually, she's secure in her relationship with Escalus, but sometimes she does have her doubts. Like now, looking at the sitting in front of her who is everything she's not.

"And who are you?" Juliet asks, clutching the cup of coffee perhaps just a bit tighter.

"Matilda, but you can call me Tillie. Everyone does," the woman replies, and Juliet wonders if she's imagining the stress on the word ‘everyone’, before then adding, "Judith called in sick today so I volunteered to take her place."

"I see," Juliet replies, and resumes walking 

"Oh, you didn't have to bring him those today," Tillie says, still smiling. "I already brought him some coffee and a donut from the break room."

"That's no matter," Juliet says, smiling back at her, "I'm still here to visit my boyfriend."

Tillie says nothing in response, only smiles, and Juliet continues walking towards Escalus's office, though more troubled now than she was when she first arrived. It's not lost on Juliet that her relationship with Escalus really only began after she herself had filled in for Judith, and that thought worries her even though she knows Escalus would never be anything but faithful, because Tillie is everything someone like him should be with, closer to him in age and well-dressed with perfect makeup and with an actual job and above all else, extremely beautiful in ways that make Juliet feel like she's back in high school all over again.

Blinking rapidly and telling herself to not cry, not now and not here, she pushes open the door to Escalus's office. The first thing she sees is the donut and cup of coffee, sitting off to the side of his desk, and a sick feeling spreads through her at the sight.

"Juliet! It's good to see you," Escalus says, smiling at the sight of her. She sets the coffee and danish down on his desk without a word and his smile falls as he asks, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," she replies, shortly. "I just wanted to bring you these. I should be going now, though, and I'll see you later."

With that, she turns and walks out, past Tillie, and to the elevator. After several long moments in which she can't help but feel as if the entire office is looking at her, the doors of the elevator finally open and Juliet steps inside and leans against the back wall.

The doors begin to close, and Juliet wills them to close more quickly so that no one will notice the tears in her eyes. Just as the doors are nearly closed and she's about to press the button to take her back down to the first floor, someone stops them and steps inside. It's Escalus, because of course it is, and then he's hitting a button inside the elevator that shuts the doors but keeps the elevator from moving.

"Obviously, something is wrong," Escalus says, turning to look at her, equal parts concerned and irritated.

"She brought you coffee," Juliet says, her voice breaking on the last syllable, looking away from him and cursing herself for letting tears come to her eyes.

"Oh, Juliet," Escalus says, softly, reaching out and turning her face back towards him. His hazel eyes meet hers and then she can't help but ask with a vague gesture back towards the doors of the elevator, "Why do you even want to be with me, and not someone like _her_?"

"Matilda? What makes you think I'd even want to be with someone like her?" Escalus asks, moving to cup her face in his hand. Juliet shrugs and replies, looking away from him, "Because someone like you deserves more than someone like me. You should be with someone older and prettier and better-off than me."

"That's where you're wrong. I love you because you're not like her," Escalus says, and she looks up at him, her eyes meeting his as he continues, "I've been surrounded by women like her pretty much every day of my life, and none of them have ever meant even half as much to me as you do."

"Really?" She asks, not trusting her voice to let her say more, and he nods.

"I've loved you ever since that one Christmas party," Escalus admits, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly.

"That long ago?" she asks, surprise flooding through her as she exclaims, "But I fell on you!"

Escalus laughs and replies, "And I fell _for_ you."

She laughs at that, wiping her eyes with her sleeve, and then Escalus is bending forward and kissing her. She leans into him, threading her fingers through his hair, not caring if she musses it. Perhaps it's better if she does, she thinks to herself. The kiss doesn't last nearly long enough, but she knows he has work to return to. Escalus pulls away and hits the button to make the elevator operational again.

Just as the elevator doors begin to open again, Escalus turns to her and says, "Oh, and Juliet? I didn't drink it. The coffee here tastes like it was brewed with piss instead of water."

She laughs, all her insecurities and doubts relieved at least for now, and stands on the tips of her toes to kiss him again.


	13. Pajamas

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What can I say, I'm tired and this seemed like a good idea.

When Escalus walks out of the bathroom, Juliet tries her very best to not laugh, but she can't help herself. Escalus looks up at her in surprise and asks, "What is it?"

"Your pajamas," she replies in between laughs. This isn't the first time she's stayed the night, but it is the first time they'd both planned to fall asleep with clothes on, as the activities involving a lack of clothing had occurred earlier, to the detriment of his couch, and because she didn't want to go home just yet. So here she is, laying in his bed in a pair of pajamas she'd brought with her just in case, laughing at his own choice in pajamas. The pajamas in question are a two-piece outfit of brown plaid flannel, that had to have been purchased at some point before at least this decade, and maybe even this century.

Honestly, she shouldn't be surprised because this is honestly so on-brand for him, but at the same time she'd expected more. Or, well, rather _less_ , at least in terms of clothing. Part of her had been hoping for just boxers, after all.

"What's wrong with them?" Escalus asks, defensively, looking from her, down his body, and then back up to her.

"Well, for starters, they're something my grandpa would wear," Juliet says, bluntly, still giggling.

"That's fair," Escalus says with a sigh.

"You could always take the shirt off," Juliet says, sitting up to look at him better, finally done laughing.

"And that'd be completely for my own benefit, of course?" Escalus asks, the corners of his lips quirking upwards into a smile.

"Of course," Juliet replies, nodding vigorously, hands clasped in anticipation. His eyes never leave hers as his hands go to the buttons of his shirt and slowly, one by one, they come undone. Escalus shrugs the shirt off and walks over to the closet to hang it back up. Juliet takes the opportunity to watch him, perhaps even to go so far as ogle him. For someone who works a desk job, Escalus is in surprisingly good shape, with only a slight softness around his middle. 

"You know, I don't think it'd hurt if you ditched the pants too," Juliet says as innocently as she can manage as he turns around, her gaze darting downwards and then back up to his face.

"You're insatiable," Escalus says, laughing far too casually and Juliet knows it's to hide the fact that he's more flattered than he seems by her words and her gaze. He then makes his way over to the bed and pulls back the covers to get in beside her. Juliet lays back down and turns to face him as she asks, "Don't you know I'll never have enough of you?"


	14. How It All Began: Escalus

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You know, I just realized this has the most chapters out of all the fics I've ever written.

Escalus has never particularly enjoyed these holiday parties. Not when he was attending them as the son of the boss, and not now that he is the boss. Which is why he's currently staying as far away from the party as he can while also technically still being present at the party. Right now, he's deeper into the office floor than he really ever goes since his own private office is near the front of the floor, and since the front is where the party is, he's trying to go as far back as he can.

He rounds the corner around one of the cubicles and that's when someone runs into him, hard enough to make him stagger back despite the frankly tiny size of said person. The first thing he registers is the smell of perfume, something sweet and vaguely floral, and the second is the pink of a dress, followed shortly by the yellow of this person's hair, and then after comes the realization that he knows who this is. 

Juliet Capulet.

He helps her right herself before stepping back again and allowing himself to look at her for just a moment. Her father talks about her occasionally but it's been ages since he last saw her, when he'd first assumed his father's position in the company and she'd come to the party to celebrate the occasion.

"Juliet, isn't it?" Escalus asks, even though he's already certain of who she is.

"Yes. The Prince, or well, um, Mister Prince, I'm so sorry," Juliet says, waving her hands wildly as she speaks. He can't help but to allow a small smile to come to his face as he replies, "It's no matter. You're not hurt, are you?"

"No," Juliet replies after a moment, staring up at him with wide brown eyes. 

"That's good," he says, letting his smile widen as he asks, "So I'm back here to escape the crowd, but what's your reason?"

"I went and got a drink from one of the water coolers. Tybalt, ah, warned me to stay away from the punch since Mercutio is here," Juliet replies, glancing away from him and then back.

"That's probably for the best," Escalus replies, grimacing as he remembers the events of last year's party. Juliet laughs at that, and the sound makes his stomach do a curious flip, which is odd because he thought he had grown past these feelings several years ago now.

Even odder is the fact that while his entire purpose of coming back here was to avoid people, he finds that he doesn't really mind being with her. In fact, he feels quite the opposite, really. He doesn't think he's felt this, this _light_ in years. He's familiar with the concept of love at first sight, but he doesn't even let himself consider that that's what this is, because the thought is preposterous and besides, this isn't even his first sight of her. 

Yet despite all of that he finds himself wishing they could stay in this moment forever. It's unlikely that he'll see her again except perhaps at other parties, but then that would require him to actually be wholly present at the parties, instead of escaping back into the dark office space. But unfortunately the moment must end as Juliet says, "Well, I should probably get back to the party before Tybalt comes looking. I'm sorry again, Mister Prince."

"Of course. And there's no need to apologize, seeing as I'm just as responsible for our collision as you were," he replies, and Juliet nods, smiling, before walking around him and back towards the party. Escalus turns to watch her, and then calls out, without even really thinking to, "Oh, and Juliet? Just Escalus is fine."


	15. How It All Began: Juliet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is pretty much the same as the last chapter, except from Juliet's POV and slightly longer, because why not?

This party has turned out to be nothing even remotely close to how she had hoped it would be, Juliet reflects to herself as she stands in front of the water cooler, a small paper cup full of lukewarm water in her hand. The music is outdated, her mother is already drunk, Paris keeps trying to make eye contact while suggestively eating food from the snack table, and the one man she actually wanted to see is curiously absent. 

She drinks the rest of the water in the cup and then crumples it up with a sigh before tossing it in the conveniently located trashcan beside the water cooler. She lingers by the water cooler for a few more minutes before figuring she should probably get back to the party before Tybalt gets worried. She walks down one row of cubicles and then around another, and that's when she smacks hard into someone. At first all she registers is that this person is taller than her, and that the front of his suit is made of a surprisingly soft material, and then she realizes that she's quite literally run into the one man she's been hoping to see since she arrived to this party: _the Prince_ himself.

It's not like she's visited the company website several times just to look at pictures of him. Absolutely not. To even think that she has would be absurd. But, just assuming that she had, hypothetically, in fact done so, then there would be no denying the fact that seeing him in pictures was nothing like seeing him in person.

There is no denying that last part, at least, Juliet concedes to herself, because as good as he looks in the pictures she absolutely has not stared at, he looks much better in person. Sure, he's older than her, and sure, he's objectively plain, but there's just something about him that draws her in. Maybe it's the way he carries himself, maybe it's his air of authority, or maybe he just has really pretty eyes.

He helps her right herself before stepping back, and the only thing going through her mind is something close to unintelligible screaming.

"Juliet, isn't it?" Escalus asks, suddenly, snapping her out of her thoughts.

"Yes. The Prince, or well, um, Mister Prince, I'm so sorry," Juliet says, internally cursing how much she's stumbling over her words and how much pointless gesturing she's doing, and the fact that she used his nickname to his face.

He smiles, a small smile but a smile nonetheless as he replies, "It's no matter. You're not hurt, are you?"

"No," Juliet replies after a moment, hoping desperately that he hasn't noticed just how much she's been staring up at him.

"That's good," he says, his smile widening as he asks, "So I'm back here to escape the crowd, but what's your reason?"

"I went and got a drink from one of the water coolers. Tybalt, ah, warned me to stay away from the punch since Mercutio is here," Juliet replies, and then wonders if it was a good idea for her to tell him the exact reason, because Mercutio is his nephew after all.

"That's probably for the best," Escalus replies, his smile turning into a grimace. Juliet laughs at that, grateful that he didn't seem to mind what she'd said, and that he even seems to agree with her.

They stand there for a moment, simply looking at one another. His grimace has faded away and turned into something soft but unreadable. Vaguely, she knows she should probably be getting back to the party now, but she doesn't want to move from this spot, not with the way he's looking at her now. She forces herself to look away from him and that damned hazel gaze as she says, reluctantly, "Well, I should probably get back to the party before Tybalt comes looking. I'm sorry again, Mister Prince."

"Of course," he replies, his expression returning to normal as he continues, "And there's no need to apologize, seeing as I'm just as responsible for our collision as you were."

Juliet nods, smiling up at him, and then walks around him and back towards the so-called party. 

Just as suddenly as he'd said her name the first time, he calls out from behind her, "Oh, and Juliet? Just Escalus is fine."


	16. Sometimes Asking For Advice Pays Off

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaaand here's another chapter!

With a deep breath to steady his nerves, Escalus firmly knocks on the door in front of him.

"It's open," Valentine calls out from inside. Escalus opens the door at that, and walks inside. Valentine is sitting at the kitchen table, bent over a book of crossword puzzles, and doesn't even look up from them at the sound of the door opening and then shutting or at his uncle walking inside. Escalus glances around the rest of the apartment that he can see and then asks, "Where's Margot?"

"She's out shopping," Valentine replies, closing his book of crossword puzzles and finally looking up.

Good, Escalus thinks to himself. The fewer people that are around to hear this, the better.

"I need your help with something," Escalus begins, hesitantly as he sits down at the table across from his nephew. Valentine is silent for a moment, and simply looks at him oddly before saying, "You know, if you wanted me to get you some viagra, you could've just texted me and I would've brought it to you."

"What? Viagra? How old do you think I am?" Escalus replies, equal parts aghast and mortified because _that_ is absolutely not the reason he's here and he can't believe Valentine would even think that it would be.

"Erectile dysfunction can affect anyone, you know, of any age," Valentine replies, far too nonchalantly, before adding, "Well, not really anyone, I suppose, since by default you'd have to have the erectile in order for it to be dysfunctioning."

"Please stop talking," Escalus replies, rubbing his temples. 

"Got it," Valentine replies, smiling.

"What I actually came here for was to ask for advice on how to propose," Escalus explains. Valentine blinks and then asks, "Propose what? A new form of merger between the Capulets and the Montagues?" 

Escalus sighs. He'd come to Valentine for advice on this because he was the only one out of Escalus's close family to have actually proposed to someone, and fairly recently at that, but he'd also forgotten just how dense his nephew can be sometimes. To Valentine's credit, however, he's never been exactly sure how much of his denseness is willful and how much is unintentional.

"No, Valentine," Escalus begins. "To propose to Juliet."

"Oh, well, that certainly makes more sense, especially considering no one actually seems to heed my advice on the merger," Valentine replies, somewhat bitterly, before abruptly turning cheerful as he asks, "What would you like to know, uncle?"

"I've been trying to think of ways to go about it, but none ever seem good enough," Escalus admits before adding, "And what if she says no?"

"You're kidding, right?" Valentine asks, incredulous. "Haven't you seen the way she looks at you?"

Escalus looks away from Valentine, almost ashamed to have that doubt, and replies, "That's fair."

"As far as how you ask her, I think as long as it's not, like, in the bathroom of a Waffle House at three-fifty in the morning on a Wednesday, you should be fine," Valentine says, reaching out to pat Escalus on the arm.

"That still doesn't help me much," Escalus replies after a moment. Valentine nods and then asks, "Well, what's one of your possible ideas?"

"I've been thinking about taking her to our favorite restaurant for dinner and asking her there," Escalus admits. Valentine makes a humming noise as he thinks and then replies, "That's a decent idea, but don't. There's too much pressure involved there for the both of you, with how many people are watching and all. How about you ask her on your way home from the restaurant instead?"

So he does. He takes Juliet to their favorite restaurant, and then after, when they're walking back to what was once his apartment alone but that has since become their apartment, and passing through a park, he gets down on one knee. Or, rather, he tries to, but instead ends up leaning awkwardly against a bench after his knee screams in protest. But still, he takes the box with the ring out of his pocket, and he asks her to marry him.

When Juliet all but screams yes and throws her arms around him and nearly knocks him off balance, well, he supposes this was worth all the frustrations after all.


	17. The Prince

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can't believe this fic is over 10,000 words now. That's definitely not something I ever expected would happen, to tell the truth, but I'm not complaining.

"You know, you've never told me exactly why everyone calls you the Prince," Juliet says one evening as they're sitting together on his couch and watching the news. Her head is resting against his shoulder and he glances down at her to find her already looking up at him.

"What brought this up now?" Escalus asks in return. He doesn't mind, not at all, but still, it's rather sudden, especially considering that the current story on the news is of how a man stole thirty-seven radishes from a farmer's market in a nearby city, and he doubts that that made her think of him. 

Or at least he hopes it didn't. 

Juliet shrugs and then replies, "I dunno. I was just talking with my parents earlier, and I noticed that neither my mother nor my father refer to you as Escalus or Mister Prince or 'your boyfriend' or whatever, it's always just _the Prince_."

Her voice lowers in pitch at the last few words and he instantly recognizes it as her imitation of her father, which he chuckles at before saying, "You know, it was actually your father who told me how the whole business of my nickname all got started, after I'd found out about it on my own."

"So how did it get started then?" Juliet asks, peering up at him, curiosity shining in her brown eyes. He thinks for a moment and then answers, "It was due in part for my name, since my last name is Prince after all, and due in part to the fact that at the time I'd started working there, my father occupied the position I do now. Basically, the reasoning behind it was that since my father was who he was, I wasn't just a Prince but _the_ Prince."

"But you've told me before that you'd started off as nothing more than a, and I quote, 'paper pusher'," Juliet says, and he laughs before replying, "That didn't matter. It was an open secret that I would eventually inherit the company and with it my father's spot, but even so, the fact that I still had to prove myself worthy to him didn't matter to the people who started it."

"Who started it exactly?" Juliet asks, her eyes narrowing, and he has to think for several moments before answering, "According to your father, it started in accounting and then spread throughout the company."

Juliet nods and is silent for a moment before asking, "So how did you find out about the nickname?"

Escalus can remember that day as clearly as yesterday, despite the fact that it was nearly fifteen years ago now, when he was as old as Juliet is now. He'd been taking files from the now-late Mister Montague to his also now-late father when he'd overhead someone say from just around a cubicle, _I've heard that **the Prince** is stuck running errands today._

_Good_ , someone else had replied. _He needs to learn what it's like to actually have to pull his weight instead of getting everything handed to him by daddy._

A third person had made a sound of agreement, and Escalus couldn't help but to but to be annoyed by this entire exchange.

_**The Prince** bids you back to work,_ he'd told them sharply as he rounded the corner of the cubicle. 

To this day, he can still remember the looks of terror on their faces at the sight of him and how quickly they'd all scattered. He'd laughed then, so hard that his stomach hurt, and he chuckles now at the memory. He tells this all to Juliet and she laughs as well before saying, "I can't believe they treated you like that, though."

"I can," he states, simply. "Truth be told, my father was angrier than I was after I told him about it."

"Weren't you angry at all?" Juliet asks, sitting up to look at him more directly. He shrugs as he replies, "A little bit, but the whole situation amused me more than anything, and, well, the nickname has lasted this long, so it wouldn't matter if I was."

Juliet frowns but says nothing in response, simply leaning in and kissing him, tangling her fingers in his hair. He can only imagine what she would've done if the Juliet of today had been there when this had all been happening. People always talk of Tybalt as the Capulet to be most feared without knowing that Juliet is just as fierce, and he loves her for it.

After Juliet pulls away, she says, "I do have to admit that _the Prince_ is a fitting nickname for you in a way, since you are _my_ Prince, if nothing else."

"There are worse nicknames to have," Escalus concedes, and kisses her again.


	18. A Struggle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one is short, but still, it's something!

Damn him, Juliet thinks, glaring up at the shelves above her. Damn him for actually being tall enough to reach above the second shelf, even if he's actually closer to being of an average height than unusually tall. Damn her father too, for not passing on his tall genes to her, and for leaving her with her mother's genes. She's taller than her mother, at least, but not by much and not enough for _this_.

All she wants is one simple bowl that just so happens to be out of her reach by several inches. She'd been able to brush it with the very tips of her fingers, but that only moved it back farther onto the shelf. There's only one thing to do now, she decides, and sets about climbing up onto the counter because she _will_ get that bowl, even if it is the last thing she does.

Belatedly, as she's already halfway up and onto the counter, she realizes that she could've dragged a chair in from the dining room and stood upon that. She briefly considers getting down and doing so, but then decides that to do so would be to admit defeat. Finally, she's up on the counter, half-kneeling-half-standing, with the bowl so close to being in her grasp.

"What are you doing?" Escalus asks, from somewhere behind her. She doesn't dare to turn and look at him, not when she's perched as precariously upon the counter as she is now.

"Getting a bowl," Juliette replies, finally grabbing the one she wants. She sets the bowl blindly down on the counter, and then begins to try to get down. She can hear Escalus sigh and then his hands are on her waist, keeping her from falling as she steps down.

"You could've just asked me to get it for you," he says as she turns around. She stands on her tiptoes to press her lips to his before smiling and saying, "Now, where would the fun be in that?"


	19. To Love

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is a bit different than the others so far, but still, it's something!

There are many things about him that Juliet loves.

There is the way his eyes crinkle at the corners when he smiles, truly smiles, and the way one corner of his mouth raises slightly higher than the other when he's smiling one of his small, secretive smiles.

There is the way he meticulously parts and combs his hair every morning, and the way he never complains when she messes it up despite all his trouble. There is the grey at his temples and the grey starting to spread through the rest of his hair as well that he sees no reason to dye away despite his diligent attention to every other aspect of his appearance.

There is the way his hands slowly smooth the minute creases from the front of his shirt, and the way his hands fly over the keyboard of his laptop when he promises her he's almost done with this one last report.

There is the sound of his laughter, and the way his voice drops lower when she's pressed against him.

There is the way he never complains when she sticks her cold hands and feet on him when they're in bed together, and the way he simply sighs and pulls her closer to the heat of him.

There is the way he always lets her try bites of his food, and how he'll surprise her with little gifts whenever he goes to the store.

There is the way he brings her flowers for no reason other than to make her smile, and the way he so carefully takes care of her when she's sick, not caring if he gets sick as well.

There is the hazel of his eyes, and the love she sees reflected back at her whenever she gazes into them.

\---

There are many things about her that Escalus loves. 

There is the way that she talks with her hands, the small gestures in normal conversation and the broad, sweeping gestures whenever she tells a story.

There is the way she sings in the shower, the way she hums when she cooks, and the way she always mouths along to the words of the songs on the radio whenever they’re driving somewhere together, even if she’s never heard the song before.

There is the way she somehow always brings him coffee just when he needs it most, and the way she smiles at him whenever he does the same for her.

There is the way she kisses him on the cheek, and the way she tangles her fingers in his hair whenever what was supposed to be a quick, chaste kiss turns into something more.

There is the way she always manages to distract him from his work whenever he's been working too hard for too long, and the way she never fails to pull him to bed when he stays up too late.

There is the way her hand fits in his, and the way her hands move across his back when she works the tension out of his muscles.

There is the way she she smiles after she gets him to laugh, and the way her shoulders shake with laughter silent whenever she finds something truly amusing. There are the awful, awful puns she makes just to see his reaction, and the times she truly does make a clever pun that even Mercutio would envy, and the way she smiles triumphantly after she makes one.

There is the way she brought and still brings color into his life, pink and red and yellow, and the satisfaction on her face when he wears the colorful ties she buys for him.

There is the brown of her eyes, and the love he sees there whenever she looks up at him.


	20. To Think of Ink

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Twenty chapters! Twenty chapters! Twenty chapters!

Today, Escalus is doing something he never had even considered doing before Juliet had spent months talking him into it, and that something is getting a tattoo. Growing up, he had always heard his mother speak dismissively of tattoos, and that delinquents were the only ones stupid enough to get them, and she didn't raise a son stupid enough to become a tattooed hooligan. He knows that not just delinquents get tattoos anymore, since even Juliet herself has a few, but still, the disapproval on his mother's face has stuck with him through all these years. 

And yet, here he is, standing inside of an out-of-the-way shop with _To Ink or Not To Ink_ written in blinking neon letters upon the door.

"Yeah, I can do that, no problem," the tattoo artist that Juliet has been speaking to says, startling Escalus from his thoughts. Escalus looks at him then, and sees that he's likely around Juliet's age, with a moody face, dark hair that looks like the color came from a bottle, and dark tattoos covering his arms and crawling up neck.

"Good," Juliet says, looking over at Escalus excitedly. He smiles weakly at her in return and wonders just how big a mistake he made in letting her pick the design. It's not that he doesn't trust her, it's just that he's nervous, and he'd promised her he wouldn't even so much as look at it until it was done, and the unknown aspect of it all is making him even more nervous. 

All of Juliet's own tattoos are small and tasteful, and all easily hidden by clothes, and he hopes she picked something like that and nothing like the garish purple peacock Mercutio has tattooed across his back. Juliet herself has a rose on her hip, a dolphin on her ankle, a small sun on her wrist, and the sword on her ribs that she'd gotten as a part of a matching pair with Tybalt. He wonders if she picked something for him that matches one of hers, and decides he wouldn't mind that too badly.

The artist disappears into a side room with the scrap of paper Juliet had handed him, while Juliet and Escalus take a seat on the couch to wait.

"How are you feeling?" Juliet asks, reaching out to hold his hand.

"Nervous," he states simply, and Juliet laughs before saying, "That's normal. You'll be fine, though. I know it."

He says nothing, simply nods, and Juliet smiles reassuring at him before saying, "You'll love it, I promise."

Just then the moody tattoo artist returns and gestures towards the fancy chair in the corner as he says, "You can come have a seat."

Reluctantly, Escalus releases Juliet's hand and makes his way over.

"Left wrist, right?" the artist asks, looking up at Juliet.

"Yes," Juliette replies, coming to stand beside the chair. 

"Put your arm up here," the boy says to Escalus this time, and Escalus complies, lifting his arm and resting it on the small table next to the chair. The artist preps Escalus's arm and then places the paper Juliet had explained to him was used to put the design onto his skin in a manner similar to a temporary tattoo. He takes this as his cue to look away, and looks up at the ceiling instead.

"Are you ready?" the tattoo artist asks.

"Yes, but, wait, I noticed you have an accent. Where are you from?" Escalus asks, absolutely not trying to delay this, glancing briefly to his tattoo artist and then back up to the ceiling.

"Denmark," the boy says, and then begins.

_**It hurts.** _

Escalus had expected as much, but expecting was nothing compared to actually experiencing it, he finds. It's a burning sort of pain, and he shifts his gaze from the ceiling to Juliet as he grabs at the edge of his seat with his free hand. He grits his teeth, determined to not swear, not over this, and then before he even knows it, it's over. 

The boy wipes his arm clean, and then Escalus finally looks down at it, only to look up at Juliet in surprise mere seconds later because while it is small, this is nothing like what he had even thought she might pick out, but at the same time he finds he likes it much more than he thought that he would, much more than anything he would've expected. Juliet is already smiling, and broadly at that, when his eyes meet hers and she says, "I thought that since you are _the Prince_ , you should have a crown to go with the name."


	21. Sleeping Soundly

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just...I love them.

"Escalus?" Juliet calls out as she walks inside their apartment. It's not often that she gets home later than he does, but tonight she'd been stuck in the library for hours, doing research for some stupid paper. 

There's no response, which is slightly worrying, but she knows he's here because she saw his car in the parking lot outside and the lights are on inside the apartment. Maybe he's just sleeping, she thinks to herself, which is good because sleep is definitely something that Escalus needs. 

She walks farther into the living room, and that's when she sees him. She has to laugh, but quietly, because when she said he needed more sleep, this definitely wasn't what she meant. What she meant was in bed, and no on the couch. 

He's laying down, at least, and his laptop is partially closed atop the coffee table. He's still even still dressed in his office clothes, though thankfully he's ditched his suit jacket and shoes. Smiling to herself, Juliet grabs her phone and takes a picture of him, making sure that the flash is off, because he's just so cute right now that she can't resist the urge to do so. 

She debates between waking Escalus and letting him continue sleeping there, because if she wakes him here, there's no doubt he'll have trouble falling back asleep, but if she leaves him, there's the distinct possibility that he'll wake up with an aching back. 

Either way she picks, he loses.

Her smile turns to a frown as she considers it, but she decides that she'll decide after she showers. For now, though, she walks forward and grabs the orange blanket from the back of a nearby chair and drapes it over him. She even goes so far as to tuck the blanket around him. Just before turning and walking to the bathroom to take her shower, she bends and presses a kiss to his forehead.


	22. Perfectly Purple

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy April Fools Day!

Today starts off as a completely normal day for Escalus. He wakes up, drinks his coffee, kisses a sleeping Juliet on the cheek as he makes his way to the bathroom, brushes his teeth, and takes a shower. It continues as a normal day until he looks down as he is rinsing the conditioner from his hair and sees that the water is running purple instead of clear. 

Without even bothering to dry off, he quickly shuts off the water and dashes to look at himself in the mirror. Upon doing so, he finds his worst fears confirmed. 

His hair is purple. 

The dark parts are only tinged purple, but the parts in his hair that have turned grey are completely purple. There are even a couple spots of his skin that have been stained purple. Staring at himself with shocked eyes, he reaches up and touches his hair with a shaking hand, and wonders just how this happened. It's been over a week since Mercutio had last come over, and Escalus definitely didn't do this to himself. That only leaves one person. 

_Juliet._

He'd never taken her for the type for pranks, and she'd never shown any desire to participate in any of Mercutio's schemes, so then why would she do this?

"Happy April Fools Day," Juliet says from the doorway of the bathroom, as if summoned by his thoughts to answer his unspoken question. He startles at the sound of her voice, and turns to look at her. She's smiling, broadly, a mischievous grin splitting across her face.

"Juliet," he says, disbelievingly, and shakes his head.

"I couldn't resist, I'm sorry," she says, walking closer to him. "But don't worry, it'll wash out in a couple of days."

He sighs in relief and turns back to the mirror, and smooths a hand over his wet hair before turning back to her and saying, "You can be truly devious when you want to be."

"Thank you," she says, reaching up to touch his hair before adding, "You know, I think you look dashing like this."

"I suppose it's not too terrible," he concedes, and smiles down at her, since at least it's not permanent and at least it's not something ungodly bright.

"Oh, and by the way, you have my full permission to prank me back," she says with a laugh, then stands on the very tips of her toes to kiss him first on the cheek and then on the lips.

And, well, if sugar somehow winds up replacing the contents of the salt shaker, then he knows absolutely nothing about that.


	23. Talk of the Future

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This has way more chapters than I'd ever imagined I would write tbh.

When Juliet comes to bed, Escalus can tell almost instantly that something is wrong. She's not quite frowning, but even so she seems troubled.

"What's wrong?" Escalus asks as she gets into bed beside him. She's quiet for a minute, looking at him and then away and then back before saying, "I took a pregnancy test earlier."

He looks at her in surprise, his heart skipping a beat at those words alone, at the thought of the possibility that he might be a father, and asks, "Are you pregnant, then?"

"No!" Juliet exclaims before adding, "It came back negative."

Escalus sighs, in what he's not entirely sure is either disappointment or relief.

"But it did get me thinking," Juliet continues. "About children, I mean, and I realized that potentially having them isn't a conversation we've ever had."

"I've thought about bringing up the topic, but I was worried it would seem like I was pressuring you to have a child in some way," Escalus admits.

"Why would you think that?" Juliet asks, looking at him in surprise.

"Simply the fact that I'm only a few years shy of forty and still childless, with the only possible heirs to my company being my only vaguely competent nephews," he says, smiling wryly.

"I see," Juliet replies, and then asks, "So, do you want to have children?"

"Eventually, yes," he says in return. He'd like to have them before he grows too old to properly play with them at playgrounds, and before he grows so old that people mistake them for his grandchildren, but at the same time he doesn't mind waiting as long as Juliet wishes to.

"Good. I feel the same," Juliet says, pausing briefly before continuing, "For starters, I'd like to at least graduate from college first and get settled into a job, and I'd like for us to be married first. And of course, we'd have to move somewhere else, as much as I love your apartment. Maybe not the suburbs, but definitely somewhere more child-friendly."

"You've put a lot of thought into this," Escalus notes, shifting a little where he sits because he can feel one of his legs just starting to fall asleep. Juliet laughs and then replies, "Oh, only every time my period is slightly late."

Escalus chuckles as well before saying, "However, I do agree with all of that."

"Good," Juliet says with a nod before asking, "So how many kids would you want to have?"

He thinks for a minute before replying, "I'm not sure."

"I'm thinking maybe ten," Juliet says, far too casually, and he chokes on air before gasping out, "Juliet!"

She dissolves into laughter before saying, "I'm kidding. I'll be happy with however many we have, whether it's only one or as many as, I don't know, five."

"I think the same," he says, and kisses her.


	24. Candlelight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been a little while since my last update, but here we are!

When the packages first arrive, Escalus thinks nothing of them, because he knows that Juliet likes to order things online fairly often. He simply carries them up to his apartment, wincing under the weight of them, and sets them down by the door for Juliet to open when she gets home from her last class of the day. He returns to his laptop and his work, and forgets about the unusually heavy boxes until Juliet comes home.

"Oh, good, they're here," is the first thing that Juliet says when she opens the door. She quickly steps inside and then shuts the door, and tosses her backpack aside before sitting down and tearing open the box closest to her. 

"What exactly is here?" Escalus asks, setting his laptop to the side and walking to stand near her.

"My candles," Juliet replies, pulling candle after candle after candle from the box and setting them to the side. Escalus picks up one and looks at it. It is green and has three wicks, and smells vaguely floral. He sets it down among the others and then steps back and asks, "Are those boxes all full of candles?"

"Yes," Juliet states, simply. He stares at her in confusion and then asks, "Why?"

"There was a sale," Juliet replies without looking up from her goal of unboxing the candles, as if that explains everything. He can't help but to gaze at her in confusion and then ask, "But why so many of them?"

"You know as well as I do that I have poor impulse control," Juliet replies with a shrug.

"Fair enough," he replies after a moment, watching as she finishes unpacking the first box and then the third, while he bends and unpacks the fourth for her. 

The amount of candles that were stuffed into these boxes is absolutely absurd, he thinks to himself. He stacks the candles, neatly, in a pile of near twenty, and then straightens himself back up.

"What are we even going to do with all of these?" Escalus asks, surveying the many piles of candles.

"Well, they'll come in handy during a power outage, for one," Juliet says after a moment of silent thought, finally finished with the fifth and final box. Escalus says nothing in return and simply stares at all the many candles in despair.

A mere two weeks later, there actually is a power outage caused by a storm that occurs when he and Juliet and sitting together on the couch and watching the evening news. One moment the lights are on and the next they're not. Juliet turns to him and smiles.

He doesn't even need to see her smile to know the vindication there.

After she's got some substantial amount of the candles lit, he concedes to himself that they have indeed come in handy, and tells her as such. Her smile widens, vindication turning to joy, and she is the most radiant thing he's ever seen, even in a room filled with candlelight.


	25. Heatwave

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry it's been so long since the last update!

The air conditioning in his apartment stops working at a little after noon, according to the clock on the wall. This in and of itself wouldn't be too terrible if not for the fact that Escalus had chosen today to work from home and the temperature outside and now inside is rapidly becoming something that he imagines wouldn't be out of place somewhere like Hell, or the inside of an oven. 

With a sigh, he closes his laptop and moves to loosen his tie before remembering that he'd dressed in a plain t-shirt today, with jeans in place of dress pants.

"Well, this was a bad time for the air to shut off," Juliet says from her seat on the couch, looking up at him from across the room, annoyance clear in her voice. She's dressed more appropriately for the heat than he is, at least, in a loose shirt and a pair of absolutely tiny shorts that he'd be more appreciative of if not for this damned heat.

"Oh, I agree," Escalus replies, tugging at his collar before looking back down at his closed laptop. He wants to continue working, but he also doesn't want to risk his laptop overheating, especially considering how long he's had it and how long it's been since he last backed up any of his files. 

"We don't have any ice cream, do we?" Juliet asks and he looks back up at her. He thinks for a moment and then replies, "I don't think so."

Juliet pouts and says, "That's a shame. I could really go for some chocolate ice cream right now, but it's so hot I don't dare suggest going out to get some."

Escalus makes a sound of agreement and them tugs at his collar again, strongly considering just going ahead and taking his shirt off.

Suddenly, Juliet stands up, smiling as if she's just realized something. He looks at her curiously as she walks towards the doorway leading to their bedroom.

"What're you doing?" Escalus asks, head tilted slightly to the side as he watches her. Juliet's smile widens as she stops and replies, explaining, "Well, since it's too hot to go outside and it'll soon be too hot to stay inside, I'm going to go change into my bathing suit, fill the bathtub with cold water, and sit in there until the air conditioning gets fixed."

"I see," he replies, and Juliet continues walking.

After a moment, Juliet calls from somewhere in their bedroom, "You're welcome to join me."

Escalus doesn't think he's ever stood up so fast.


	26. Paper or Plastic?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Featuring a guest appearance from a certain Montague.

Perhaps a supermarket isn't the typical choice for a date, but Juliet doesn't really mind, because Escalus isn't really a typical man. And besides, she's out of paper towels. 

Escalus had mentioned needing to do his grocery shopping and Juliet had offered to tag along with him, in part because of the paper towels and in part because of the chance it afforded her to spend more time with him. There are two Icees, banana for her and white cherry for him, in the basket of the cart that they'd purchased from the fast food place near the entrance of the supermarket, at least, so that this has some semblance of an actual date, even if they're currently passing down aisle five, which is home to countless boxes of cereal, both hot and cold.

"How about this?" Juliet asks, picking up a box of Sour Patch Kids cereal for Escalus to look at. He turns and does so, and the disgust on his face is palpable and she can't help but to laugh as he replies, "That sounds terrible, but for some reason I can't help but get the feeling that Mercutio would enjoy it."

"He probably would," Juliet agrees, and returns the box to the shelf. Escalus grabs a box of perfectly sensible organic cereal while she crosses the aisle to grab a box of blueberry oatmeal. She's just returned to Escalus and the cart when someone from behind her calls out, "Juliet? Is it really you?"

She whirls around in surprise, box of oatmeal still clasped in her hands, while Escalus turns more calmly, because she knows this voice, and it's one she hadn't expected to hear again anytime soon. 

"Romeo?" Juliet asks, absentmindedly tossing her box of oatmeal in the cart as she stares at the boy, no, man now making his way towards her. It's been years since she last saw him, but she's sure she'd know him anywhere. Besides, the only thing that's really changed about him is that his dark hair is longer and he's filled out more, so that he's built more solidly and less like a noodle.

"It's good to see you again," Romeo says, coming to stand in front of her, a smile spread wide across his face. Next to her, Escalus shifts awkwardly from foot to foot and pretends to be interested in a box of Cheerios.

"Likewise," Juliet replies, and reaches down to intertwine her fingers with Escalus's as she continues, "I'd love to stay and catch up, but I'm busy at the moment."

Only then does Romeo seem to see Escalus beside her and the way that they're holding hands. His smile falls somewhat as he says, "Oh."

"Yes," Escalus says, looking away from the cereal and to Romeo as he says, "You're Romeo Montague, aren't you? Your mother works for me."

"Wait, you're with _the Prince_ now?" Romeo exclaims, surprise clear on his face at the revelation as he looks back to Juliet.

"Yes. And we're currently on a date," Juliet replies, perhaps a bit more sharply than she'd intended to.

"Really? At the supermarket?" Romeo asks, incredulously.

"At least it's cleaner than _Laertes's Lanes_ ," Juliet retorts, recalling the dingy bowling alley he'd taken her to for their first date. Romeo chuckles sheepishly and at least has the grace to look embarrassed. Beside her, Escalus chuckles too, but very quietly. 

With a final glance from Juliet to Escalus and then back, Romeo says, "Well, I should be going now. It was nice to see you again, Juliet."

She smiles at him and nods, and then he's turning and leaving while she turns back to the man beside her.

Escalus is even more silent than he normally is, a slight frown on his face. Suddenly, Juliet feels the need to explain her history with Romeo to him, so she does, "We dated for our senior year of high school, and really, we probably really only stayed together for that long in order to go to prom together, and then we broke up after graduation because I decided to go to college here while he received a scholarship at some college down in Mantua."

"I see," Escalus replies, voice unreadable.

"You know, I'm glad things worked out the way that they did, because now I get to be here," she says, stepping closer to him before continuing, "With you."

"I see," Escalus says again, only smiling this time, and Juliet stands on the tips of her toes to press a kiss to his cheek.


	27. Vacation Miniseries: The Day Before

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> With this chapter comes (hopefully) exciting news! That news is that this chapter is the first of a ten part miniseries of sorts involving Juliet and Escalus on a (much-needed) vacation. I hope that you all enjoy it!

"I'm finally free!" Juliet all but shouts as soon as she's in the door. She can see into the living room from where she stands, which also means she can see how Escalus startled at the sound, or more likely, the volume, of her voice before he turns from where he stands by the bookshelf to look at her and ask, "This last exam was for abnormal psychology, wasn't it? How did it go?"

She closes the door and sets her backpack down before answering, "It went great! I think I did really well on this one."

"That's good," Escalus replies, smiling before continuing, "To celebrate, I was thinking that you and I could take a short vacation starting tomorrow."

Juliet can't help but to stop walking towards him in shock as she asks, only halfway jokingly, "Who are you and what have you done with the real Escalus?"

Escalus chuckles and then replies, "I promise you I'm still me. I just wanted to do something special since this is your last summer break before you graduate."

"Oh," Juliet says, blinking rapidly, before asking, "But what about the birds? And your work?"

A small smile plays at his lips as he answers, "Mercutio is going to come over to take care of the birds and Valentine has agreed to take over my responsibilities until you and I get back."

"Well, where are we going then?" Juliet asks, letting a smile spread across her face at the thought of just being with him and with no responsibilities involved whatsoever, just her and him alone together.

"The beach," Escalus replies simply, and her smile widens.


	28. Vacation Miniseries: The First Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the next part of the miniseries!

It has been ten hours since Juliet woke up this morning, nine hours since she'd finished packing and helped Escalus load up the car with their luggage, eight hours since she'd said her goodbyes to her birds and then walked out the door and to the car with Escalus, but now, seven hours after that, they've finally arrived in the beach town that Escalus had told her about when they first started their drive. Now, she thinks, staring out the window at all the buildings they pass, all that's left is to get to their hotel, check in, and then hopefully pass out on the bed.

However, Escalus drives past all of the hotels, even the fanciest ones, and Juliet can't help but look at Escalus in confusion. Instead of looking back at her, he simply keeps his eyes on the road, though a smile so small that Juliet wonders if she's imagining it comes to play at his lips. He keeps driving, until they've turned down a road that's so close to the coast it might as well be on the beach, and then finally stops in the driveway of a house. 

It's a house unlike any Juliet has seen before, as her family prefers lakes to oceans, and somewhat strange to look at, though in an endearing way. The house itself is a cute one, the walls painted a pale salmon pink and the windows accented with white shutters, but it also happens to be built several feet above the ground and propped up on tall stilts.

"What is this?" Juliet asks, looking from the house to the man sitting in the seat beside her. Escalus is smiling as he looks at her and says, "Our beach house."

"Since when have you had a beach house?" Juliet asks, incredulous. Escalus shrugs as he replies, far too nonchalantly, "Since last Wednesday. You know Valentine's fiancée Margot? Her father owns an ungodly amount of property down here, and he let me buy this one at a discount."

Juliet looks away from him and at the house in front of them and then back at him before asking, "Haven't you said before that having more than one house is frivolous?"

"Well, sometimes you just make me want to be frivolous," Escalus replies, unbuckling his seatbelt before reaching up and resting his hand on her cheek, with a certain softness in his hazel eyes as he continues, "Now, how about we go and get settled in?"


	29. Vacation Miniseries: The Second Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> With this miniseries, I'm trying to write and post a new part each day. Here's to hoping I manage to keep up with this.

When Juliet first wakes up, she finds that she's not entirely sure where she is. The bedroom is unfamiliar, the pale yellow walls and tiled floor a far cry from the white walls and carpeted floors of Escalus's apartment, but then she remembers that she's in the beach house and not the apartment. No longer confused about her location, Juliet rolls over to reach for Escalus, only to find herself alone in the bed.

She sits up then, looking around the bedroom only to find herself alone here too. With a yawn and a stretch, Juliet swings her legs over the edge of the bed and then stands up. She walks slowly out of the bedroom, and that's when the smell of fresh coffee hits her. Escalus must be in the kitchen, then, she realizes, and makes her way there.

Surely enough, there he is, standing in front of the stove, still clad in his pajama pants and nothing else.

"Good morning," Juliet says from the doorway, looking over him in appreciation. Escalus looks over his shoulder at her, a faint smile on his lips as he replies, "Good morning to you too. I hope you don't mind having omelets for breakfast."

"Omelets are fine," she assures him, walking closer. Escalus turns back to the stove as he continues, "What would you like to do today? I'm afraid that there's a chance of rain later, so the beach might not be the best choice, though."

"We can go to the beach tomorrow," Juliet replies, coming to stand behind Escalus, wrapping her arms around his waist and resting her head on his bare back as she continues, "Today, I just want to be with you."


	30. Vacation Miniseries: The Third Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Featuring the obligatory beach ~~episode~~ chapter!

"Have you seen the sunscreen anywhere?" Juliet calls out from where she stands in front of the bathroom mirror. She's changed into her bathing suit, already put her hair up in a ponytail, and now all she needs is sunscreen and she'll be good to go. Unfortunately for her, she can't seem to find it anywhere.

"Here," Escalus says from the doorway of the bathroom, holding out the bright orange bottle of sunscreen for her to take.

"Thank you," Juliet replies, taking it and smiling at him before turning back to the mirror. She opens the lid squirts out some sunscreen into her hand before setting the bottle down on the counter and beginning to apply the sunscreen to her face. 

After she finishes with her face, she notices that Escalus is still standing in the doorway. She turns and finds him leaning against the doorway, gazing at her appreciatively.

"You know, instead of just standing there, you could help me," Juliet tells him, and his gaze quickly flicks back up to her face. She allows herself a small smile at the look on his face, which is very much the one a child just caught in the cookie jar would have, and then turns back to the mirror, but not before sneaking in an appreciative look of her own, because that combination of green swim shorts and nothing else really does look good on him.

"Fine, fine," Escalus replies, smiling as well, coming to stand behind her before picking up the sunscreen bottle, putting some in his hand before returning it to the counter. In the mirror, she can see him looking down at her, almost perplexed in trying to find the best way to work around the strings of her bikini top.

"Here," she says, smiling at his reflection in the mirror before reaching back with one hand and untying the bow holding her bikini top up, so that it just hangs around her neck now, but still thankfully keeps everything covered. She hears the sharp intake of his breath but he doesn't say anything in return, simply beginning to apply the sunscreen to her back. The sunscreen is cold but his fingers are warm, and Juliet finds that she doesn't mind the contrast at all as she returns to applying sunscreen to the rest of her front that she can reach.

After her sunscreen has been completely applied and Escalus has re-tied the strings of her top, they set out for the beach, colorful towels in arm. This house really isn't far from the coast, Juliet reflects during their ten minute walk from the bottom of the stairs of the house to the white sand of the beach. 

Luckily, the beach isn't yet overly crowded, so they're able to find a good spot to lay their towels, a flowery pink one for Juliet and one with sea turtles on it for Escalus, out and then lay down themselves, side by side.

Juliet lays there, on her towel in the sun, until she's certain not just that her sunscreen has soaked in well enough but also that the heat is quickly starting to become unbearable. She stands and begins walking towards the water, but pauses to look back over her shoulder at Escalus, who is still laying on his towel and gazing up at her, and asks, "Well, aren't you going to join me?"


	31. Vacation Miniseries: The Fourth Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry that I missed a day! I didn't feel like writing yesterday and since none of these chapters are prewritten ~~though they probably should be~~ , I fell a little bit behind, but here's day four now!

The moment Escalus parks the car in front of the gift shop simply named _Iago's Emporium_ , Juliet is already hurrying to get out. She's never actually been to one of these gifts shops before and has become intrigued by them after seeing so many of them on the initial drive to the beach house, so she'd finally convinced Escalus to take her to the one closest to the house, despite his own hesitance. He follows her inside, albeit more slowly, but doesn't look at anything with interest, simply stands there and watches her as she looks through a rack of t-shirts. 

When Juliet looks up and notices this, she asks, "What's wrong?"

Escalus shrugs as he replies, "I've just never been overly fond of these kinds of stores. I find them to be too...kitschy, I suppose, for my liking."

"That's because you're too serious," Juliet retorts, reaching out and poking him in the arm. When he doesn't disagree with that, she continues, "How about you go wait in the car, then? I'm going to see if I can find something for you that you don't think is kitschy."

"You don't have to do that, really," Escalus says, faintly grimacing. Juliet fixes him with a stare and replies, "No, but I want to."

He doesn't even try to argue further, simply sighs, nods, and turns and walks back to the front of the store and then to the car. After he leaves, Juliet turns and begins to walk around the shop, wondering what she could get for him that he would possibly like.

A shirt? Maybe, except for the fact that the few t-shirts Escalus owns and wears are plain in design and color, barring the few with stripes. A magnet? Maybe not. A few hermit crabs? Probably not. A shark in a jar? Definitely not. 

Finally, Juliet reaches the section of novelty mugs, which might could actually work. She stops in front of one of the shelves and turns one around at random. When she does, she finds it's her turn to grimace now, because she understands what Escalus means by kitschy now, because while the back of the mug was inconspicuous, the front of it features a pair of disembodied, bikini-clad ceramic breasts. She quickly turns that one around and continues her search.

Eventually she comes across a fairly plain mug with sea turtles on it, and remembering the print of Escalus's beach towel from yesterday, decides that this one is the one. She does, however, grab herself a mug as well, this time one with palm trees on it, so that this way they can both have new mugs. She also ends up grabbing a pink t-shirt for herself as she passes back by the t-shirts, a few necklaces when she passes by those, and a small lizard statue she spots near the checkout station that's too cute not to get.

She stops getting things after she picks up the lizard statue and instead gets in line and pays for her armful of stuff. Once it's all bagged up, she hurries out to the car, smiling broadly and pleased with her purchases, where Escalus awaits. The passenger side door is unlocked, so she simply gets in and sits down, rummaging through the bag until she finds the mug. Once she finds it, she holds it out to him in triumph.

"It's not terrible," Escalus says, simply, but his smile tells her that she's actually managed find something he likes.


	32. Vacation Miniseries: The Fifth Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're in the home stretch now! Hopefully I'll be able to finish the rest before I get burnt out completely.

"Look over there," Juliet says to Escalus, pointing towards the tank containing brightly colored starfish.

"They're certainly pretty," Escalus says, walking closer to the glass so that he can read the description. She looks around at the other tanks, trying to see if she can see the one she'd wanted to come see in particular, or rather, that she wanted Escalus to see. There's an exhibit with jellyfish, one with eels, one with sharks that they hadn't spent long by, one with other assorted tropical fish, and finally, down the hall is the exhibit that's one of the main reasons she wanted to come to this aquarium, and that is one with the sea turtles currently here for rehabilitation.

She knows that Escalus likes sea turtles, and would even go so far as to say they're his favorite animal, or at least one of his favorites, so she thought he'd like to see them. Of course, there are things she'd wanted to see here too, but her admiration for aquatic animals isn't anywhere near his. Besides, tricking him into seeing sea turtles is probably the least she can do to thank him for buying an entire beach house because of her.

"Come on," Juliet says, smiling, reaching down and grabbing Escalus's hand before starting to pull him towards the exhibit. With a sigh, he turns and follows her so that she's not pulling him quite so much.

"What's the rush?" Escalus asks, amused, as he finally manages to walk beside her instead of behind her.

"Look," Juliet says, smiling broadly, when they stop in front of the exhibit, pointing with her free hand towards the glass in front of them and what lies behind it.

This, she thinks, smiling at his he gazes at the sea turtle swimming past, a certain kind of wonder clear on his face that she's only ever seen a few scarce times before, was definitely worth the trip to the aquarium, if not this entire trip to the beach.


	33. Vacation Miniseries: The Sixth Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is brought to you by the power of nostalgia!

"Two tickets for _A Midsummer Night's Scream_ , please," Escalus says to the clerk. Juliet stands off to the side, looking at the little fifty cent bouncy ball dispenser and wondering if she should get one. Sure, she's almost twenty-two, but bouncy balls are fun. Why not, Juliet asks herself, and then puts fifty cents into the slot and is given a marbled one with all of the primary colors plus white on it. 

She slips it into her purse and briefly considers getting a second one, before deciding that she might come back after the movie before turning and meeting Escalus where he waits. He has two bags of popcorn, two small sodas, and one back of Skittles. She smiles at the sight of the candy and then relieves him of one of the bags and one of the sodas. After she's gotten both situated well enough to carry, then begin to walk farther into the movie theater.

"Remember our first date?" Juliet asks, looking back down at the skittles and turn up at Escalus as they walk to the appropriate theater room.

"I do," he says, smiling as he continues, "At least we're properly dressed for the chance of rain today."

That chance of rain is the entire reason they're even here to see a movie, and Juliet made sure that they were both wearing water-safe shoes before leaving the beach house.

"It wasn't all bad, though," Juliet replies, smiling as she thinks back to how she'd kissed him after they'd made it to his car. Besides, the movie was a decent one too. Juliet isn't entirely sure if today's movie will be, but that's just because they'd picked something to see at random.

"No, it wasn't," Escalus replies, his smile widening, and when they're in their seats, he leans over and kisses her on the cheek. With her own smile widening, she reaches over and intertwines her fingers with his.

The movie does turn out to be a horror movie, but for once, Juliet finds that she doesn't really mind, if for no other reason than the excuse it provides her to sit closer to Escalus.


	34. Vacation Miniseries: The Seventh Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for the delay! I didn't mean to disappear like that, but here's the next part, finally!

"So you've really never been to a water park before?" Juliet asks Escalus as they pass through the entrance, exchanging their tickets for access to the water park.

"No," Escalus replies, shaking his head and continuing, "My parents never took me to one when I was younger, and I'd never felt the urge to after I became an adult."

"Oh," Juliet says, only slightly surprised before an idea pops into her head. She reaches out and grabs his hand before saying, "Well, come on, then. I know just what we should do first."

Escalus raises his eyebrows, but follows her without question nonetheless. She's been to a water park run by the same company as this one several times before, so she's not surprised to find that what she's looking for is located in almost exactly the same part of the park as the one back at home. Finally, they make it to what Juliet had in mind, which happens to be be one of the sets of water slides. 

"Are you sure this is safe?" Escalus asks after a moment of staring up at the slides above them.

"Probably? I mean, I don't really trust the ones where you don't have the inner tubes to sit on, but these ones should be good," Juliet explains, releasing his hand and hoisting an inner tube over her shoulder. Escalus does the same as he replies, "If you say so."

Despite his hesitation, he follows her all the way up the stairs, though they do have to stop briefly in the middle because of Escalus's knee hurting, but eventually they do make it to the top. Luckily they're able to get to get on the slides at the same time, and on two that are right next to each other.

"I'll see you at the bottom," Juliet tells Escalus, who smiles weakly back at her, and then she's plunged into darkness as she pushes her tube off and into the opening of the slide. This is more fun than she'd remembered, she thinks to herself as the water sends her through the twists and turns of the slide, though she can't help but to wonder just what Escalus thinks of it as well, and if he's enjoying it as much as she is.

Before long, she's spat out from the slide and into the pool of water and the bottom, whereupon she hastily gets off of the inner tube and pulls it along with her up to the stairs to get out of the pool. As she stands on the slab of concrete there, inner tube back over her shoulder, she looks around for Escalus only to find that she'd actually gotten out first. 

However, not long after she starts looking around for him, Escalus comes hurtling out of the opening of the slide he'd gone down.

"How was it?" Juliet asks him when he, inner tube over his shoulder, comes to stand beside her.

"Better than I thought it'd be," he admits, reaching up with his free hand to push his wet hair out of his face, and she smiles.

"You know I love you, right?" Juliet asks as she and Escalus walk over to return their inner tubes to the pile they'd gotten them from. While she'd already loved him before, the fact that he got on the slide, despite his hesitation, all for the fact that he trusts her only serves to make her love him more.

"I do," Escalus replies, looking at her in slight surprise, no doubt wondering what prompted this, as he replies, "And I love you too."


	35. Vacation Miniseries: The Eighth Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To make up for my absence, I've gone ahead and finished the remaining parts of this miniseries as well, and I'm posting them all today.

"A table for two please," Escalus tells the maître d', who, with a smile and a nod, leads them to a small table, whereupon Escalus pulls out Juliet's seat for her. She smiles and thanks him, for the simple fact that he did that for her despite the fact that the restaurant they're at today is a simple seafood place and not anything particularly fancy.

"Your waiter will be with you shortly," the maître d' tells Juliet and Escalus after they take their seats, and they both nod in thanks. Juliet picks up the menu to survey the food and drink options and across from her, Escalus does the same.

Sure enough, it really isn't long before their waiter arrives to takes their orders, which they give. Juliet orders first, having chosen shrimp tacos and a soda, and then Escalus, with an order of shrimp tacos as well and an iced tea.

"It really is beautiful here," Juliet says after their waiter leaves and it's just her and Escalus again, as she looks out through the window beside her and to the beach beyond, and admires the white sand and sparkling water. Today was their last true day of the vacation, as tomorrow will consist of only packing and then travel, and Juliet can't help but to gaze somewhat longingly out the window.

"It is," Escalus agrees, but pauses and then adds, "But I don't think the scenery is the most beautiful thing here."

"Oh?" Juliet asks, tearing her gaze from the window and turning it back towards the man sitting across from her.

"You are," he says, a soft smile playing at his lips, before reaching out and taking her hand in his.


	36. Vacation Miniseries: The Final Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here's the final installment of the vacation miniseries! I hope you all enjoyed it!

Juliet stands out on the back balcony of the beach house, looking out at the sea for one final time before she and Escalus begin the drive home. She really will miss this house, this view, and the opportunity to be with Escalus and Escalus alone, without his work or her classes to worry about, that this trip afforded her. Of course, she's glad to be going home too, back to her birds and her family, but _still_.

"I'm ready when you are," Escalus tells her from the doorway, pulling her out of her thoughts.

"I'm ready," Juliet says, even though she isn't really, turning and walking back inside and then through the front door and then down the steps and to Escalus's car. He finishes locking up the house and then joins her. He'd already brought their bags down earlier, so all that's left to do is for them to actually get in the car themselves, which they do.

"Maybe we could come out here again soon," Juliet says as she buckles herself into her seat.

"I think that could be arranged," Escalus replies after a moment, and Juliet finds a small smile playing at his lips when she looks over at him. She can't help but to smile as well before leaning over and pressing a kiss to his cheek.


	37. Birthday Girl

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Since today is canonically Juliet's birthday, I thought I'd do a chapter for it! I'll be doing the same for Escalus, only on the day I've assigned him instead.

Today is Juliet's birthday, and, yet, she finds herself stuck spending her day at work. This in and of itself wouldn't be too terrible, since she is going to be going out for dinner with her family later after all, but there's also the fact that the workday is almost halfway over and she has yet to catch a single glance of _the Prince_ himself. 

She knows that she shouldn't care nearly as much as she does, and that not seeing him isn't that big of a deal, really, but even so, she'd still hoped that she'd get to see him, especially on today of all days. 

Unfortunately for her, he's been holed up inside his office since she'd even arrived this morning, and has shown no signs of emerging yet, not even to dash to the restroom. With a sigh, Juliet straightens up the desk that's only temporarily hers before grabbing her bag and standing. 

After a final glance back at the damnably-closed door to Escalus's office, she gets in the elevator with a quiet sigh. At least she gets to go to Starbucks for lunch, she tells herself, since Tybalt had given her a giftcard a week ago as an early present, but even that thought doesn't cheer her up much.

When she returns from her lunch at Starbucks, she finds a vase filled with pink roses sitting on her desk, complete with an attached card. She walks over and lifts the card so that she can read it, and can't help but smile when she does, her cheeks growing warm and her stomach doing an odd little flip.

\---

_Dearest Juliet: Happy birthday. Sincerely, E.P._


	38. Interior Redecoration

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Inspiration struck so here's a new chapter!

When Escalus arrives home from work, he finds himself pausing just inside the doorway, looking around in surprise at the things that were not there when he'd left for work this morning.

There are three throw pillows on his grey couch, all brightly patterned in yellow and pink. There's a green blanket folded neatly next to one of the pillows and an orange blanket draped over one of his armchairs. In that same chair is a pillow matching the ones on the couch. 

On his coffee table is a tiny succulent in a terracotta pot and on one of his shelves there are pink candles. On the wall, there are three new paintings, all done in pastel watercolor, and there's even a new floral shade on one of his lamps.

"Juliet?" Escalus calls out, knowing that only she could've done this, and hoping that she's still here. Unsurprisingly, given the way she spends more time with him than she does at home, she is, as evidenced by how she walks into his living room, smiling as she asks, "How was work?"

"It was fine," Escalus says, brows furrowing together as he says, "I see that you've been busy today."

"I thought I'd surprise you," Juliet replies, her smile falling slightly as she asks, worriedly, "You're not mad, are you?"

"No," Escalus replies, as he looks around his apartment again, at what was previously just plain but now has little traces of _Juliet_ all around, and finds himself the opposite of mad as he adds, "I think it's perfect."


	39. Sweater Weather

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A collection of short fics focusing on the pairing of Juliet Capulet and Prince Escalus, all set in the same modern AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can't believe it's been a month since the last update!

The last time Escalus had seen his favorite sweater, it had been neatly folded and tucked into the top drawer of his dresser. That had been last week. Now, it's not there. He looks all throughout the drawer and even looks through the dirty clothes, but still can't find it.

 _Juliet,_ he realizes and with a sigh, goes off to find her. 

When he sees her, standing in the kitchen and pouring herself a bowl of cereal, he can't help but to sigh fondly and shake his head as he takes in what she's wearing. He'd recognize the worn brown plaid of his sweater anywhere. It's long on her, the hem falling to near mid-thigh, and the sleeves are too long as well.

"So that's where my sweater went," Escalus says, leaning against the doorframe. She turns around to face him, and he finds that he doesn't really mind that she's wearing it, not when she looks as good as she does.

"You can't deny that I look cute in your clothes," she says, with a cheeky smile. He chuckles and walks forward to kiss her. When they part, he's smiling just as wide as she was before and says, "'Cute' isn't really the word I would've chosen, but I agree with the sentiment."


End file.
